1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed, in general, to a firearm sight training tool, and, more specifically, relates to a method and tool for training a shooter to properly align a firearm's sights relative to a target. The applicable technical fields include those fields associated with training tools and methods for achieving and enhancing shooting accuracy.
2. Description of the Background Art
Every Marine is a rifleman. The following excerpt is a portion of work that every Marine must memorize, and is commonly known as the “Rifleman's Creed”: “This is my rifle. There are many like it, but this one is mine. It is my life. I must master it as I must master my life. Without me my rifle is useless. Without my rifle, I am useless. I must fire my rifle true. I must shoot straighter than the enemy who is trying to kill me. I must shoot him before he shoots me. I will. My rifle and I know that what counts in war is not the rounds we fire, the noise of our burst, or the smoke we make. We know that it is the hits that count. We will hit . . . . ”
Firearm training is a critical portion of the instruction received by our Marines and other military and law enforcement personnel, and it can be just as important to recreational shooters and private citizens. During typical firearm training sessions, a trainee/student is provided instruction on the features and safe handling of a subject firearm/weapon; how to load, unload and clear the firearm; what is a proper firing position or stance; how to use the firearm's sights (or aim); and how to shoot the firearm.
There are a variety of conditions that should be corrected when aligning the sights of a firearm such as a rifle or handgun. As examples, the distance to a target must be taken into consideration to adjust for bullet drop, and other adjustments may be required to account for cross winds and other ambient conditions. Therefore, it is not uncommon for some shooters to experience difficulty in learning how to properly aim their firearms when using prior art methods of instruction, which frequently leads to increased training costs and other unfavorable results—such as the removal of otherwise highly qualified and capable recruits from the Marine Corps or from other positions that require expertise in firearm use.
Moreover, many firearm users first learn how to aim weapons that utilize iron sighting systems. Iron systems may significantly differ from optical sighting systems; therefore, many firearm coaches and instructors experience difficulty in teaching an iron system trained shooter how to utilize and orient an optical sighting system reticle onto a target. This training difficulty is compounded by the inability of both the instructor and the trainee looking through the same optical sight simultaneously, which prevents the instructor from determining if the shooter is properly aligning the sights of the firearm relative to the target. [A sighting system reticle is, in general, a marking or scale on transparent material (as in a gun sight) that is used for aiming. Without limitation, a typical reticle may be cross hairs, a grid, circles, chevrons, or a dot.]
It is the applicant's belief that there is no training tool or method available that effectively “bridges-the-gap” between current training tools or methods that is capable of providing an instructor some sense of certainty or assurance that an instructor's aiming instructions are being comprehended by a trainee.